Dominant defense

Tell the first five opponents of the Colony Knights, if you don't score you can't win.

Now tell the first opponents of the Colony Knights something they didn't already know.

The Knights, currently ranked second in the Anchorage Daily News Coaches poll with a 5-0 record, have brought new meaning to the term stingy defense. Already through the fifth week of the 2004 prep football season, opponents of Colony have managed to score just six points. Colony, home of the state's best defense, hosts Palmer tonight at 7 p.m.

Kenai running back Dakota Craig is the only player to have crossed the goal line against the Knights this season, scoring in the second quarter of a 31-6 Colony win in week three. Aside from that, Colony's other opponents -- South Anchorage, Soldotna, West Valley and Lathrop -- were held scoreless. Colony is yet to see one of the state's high octane offenses, such as North Pole, East or West, but the opponents to date have otherwise seen success when playing teams not named the Colony

Knights.

Kenai, the defending small school state champions, scored 204 in four games not against the Knights. The Kards put 50 points on the scoreboard in a win over Lathrop and 29 against Eielson, a team with three shutouts of their own. Soldotna is averaging just more than 20 points per game and West Valley is averaging just less than 20 points per game against opponents other than Colony.

Going into week six, Colony is one of four teams to have allowed 50 points or less this season, but the next fewest is Chugiak's 46 points allowed. Eielson has allowed just 47 points and West has given up 48. In the last two weeks the Colony defense has even outscored their opponents totals. The Knights have scored defensive touchdowns in two straight, and scored a safety in week 4.

The statistics speak for themselves, but what is the secret? Colony head coach Randy Magner said, as a unit the Knights'â defense is among the best he has coached during his tenure.

"It's right up there," Magner said. "It's one of the best, if not the best."

Balance and depth have keyed the Knights'â defensive success. Colony's four down lineman, three linebacker defense with a cover-two scheme has stifled both the run and the pass.

"It's characteristic of the defense we play, there is a lot of things we can do with it," Magner said. "[Jamie] Mayo does a great job of preparing for each individual week."

Magner sends the credit of the defensive success toward Mayo, his defensive coordinator.

"If you're going to talk about defense, you got to talk about Jamie Mayo," Magner said.

A veteran of the Knight coaching staff for about a decade and a past Railbelt Conference assistant coach of the year, Mayo draws the scheme and this season he has a bundle of talent to plug into that scheme.

"Our starters are as good as we've ever had," Magner said. "We have good people at each position and good alternates."

Prior to the season the Knights felt the interior and the secondary would be the strength of the defense. They were right. The interior, led by tackles Domminick Bellotte and James Savage and middle linebacker Kyle Coffman, is a giant reason why the Knights have given up more than 90 total rushing yards just once. Colony allowed 157 yards rushing, 101 to Craig on 32 carries, in the win over Kenai. Soldotna has the next highest rushing total against the Knights, 89.

The secondary, led by all-region backs Justin Schwartzbauer and Rhett Magner, has allowed just 357 total yards and no touchdowns. Magner said a pleasant surprise in the defensive backfield has been the play of Randale Harvey.

Another pleasant surprise, according to Magner, has been the play of the exterior positions of the defense, the defensive ends and outside linebackers. Coffman, who broke the school record for tackles as an outside linebacker last season, was moved inside, creating a hole at the position. The Knights have had several players step into the position to create a strength out of a possible weakness. Billy Collins, Austin Manelick, Mike Richards and sophomore Nathan Kowalchuck have all received significant playing time in the outside linebacker spots.

"There's good competition there," Magner said.

At defensive end, Rickey Cunningham and Dan Comargo have excelled.

"They're as good as we've ever had as a pair," Magner said.